"Unfortunately the medalists didn’t crack": Lidl-Trek's best rider at European Championships beats Ayuso and Skjelmose
Cycling
Toms Skujins may not be on par with the likes of Tadej Pogacar and Remco Evenepoel, but the Latvian's record at the biggest Championships is not any less impressive. It all started with Skujins finishing 5th at the Paris Olympic Games. Since then, the Lidl-Trek rider finished 4th and 5th at the two most recent World Championships and now also 5th at the European Championships in Ardeche. Better than Lidl-Trek (future) stars Juan Ayuso and Mattias Skjelmose.
"Once again I managed to squeeze out the maximum – I'm happy about that. The team did a superb job, which is always a joy. I'm satisfied – there’s no strength left in the legs, so everything's as it should be," Skujins said in an interview for the Latvian Cycling Federation.
"The course, of course, was tough – as always in competitions at this level. Unfortunately, on the last long climb the group split quite a bit – the six strongest riders broke away, and at that moment I just couldn’t keep up with them," Skujins was honest about the level of his rivals.
"Then the main goal was to stay with the next group and try to fight for the highest possible placing, because I knew there were still 70–80 kilometers left and the guys ahead might crack. One of them did – in the very last lap, with about 15 kilometers to go, I managed to catch up to one of them. The medalists didn’t crack, unfortunately – but that’s how it goes this year."
Quite strong chasing group formed behind the escaped men. From there, Skujins attacked alongside his Lidl-Trek teammate Mattias Skjelmose on the last lap to battle it out for remaining places of honor.
Toms Skujins during European Championships in Ardeche
"It’s always nice when, if not a teammate, then at least someone familiar is with you – someone you can talk to and agree that you'll both ride all the way to the line. Even though at that point we were in sixth and seventh place – we knew that if the front three started looking at each other, we might even get into the fight for medals. But unfortunately, only one of them cracked, and I managed to catch and pass him."
Weakened team
The national team of Latvia was weakened by the absence of it's second climber (all-rounder) Krists Neilands. Thus more pressure was on the shoulders sprinters Emils Liepins and Kristians Belohvosciks. The two did the maximum in their abilities before dropping out of the race around half-way point.
"The start itself was actually very hard – straight into a climb. The guys were fighting for the breakaway, and the battle was really intense – I'm very happy that Kristians managed to make it into the break in the end. On the second lap, he also managed to get me and Emils into a good position. Everything was great, the guys did their jobs – Emils in the first lap, Kristians in the second. Really satisfied – hats off to the guys."
The other two Latvians, like most of the field, did not finish – only 17 riders completed the race. Skujins is again fifth, just like at the World Championships in Rwanda where he was beaten by Skjelmose. His teammate took seventh this time. The Latvian's result only underlines the 34-year-old's unique ability to perform in the most challenging races.
"Both fifth-place finishes are quite similar – at the World Championships it was also all Europeans ahead of me. Same thing, really (laughs), just a few different surnames in third and fourth. Slightly different course, slightly different conditions, but the names in the top ten seem pretty similar."
Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
claps 2visitors 2
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- I get the point totally. We live in the snowflake society where some riders forget they are getting paid to ride and get results. When they have a few issues they try to look outside of the real issue instead of themselves. It odd so many of the team are making no complaints and getting on with their job. If you do not like what you do find another job simples. Tough love as my mum would say.paultryan200207-11-2026
- many people advise him to grow slowly and rather do giro and/or vuelta instead of tdf. but i can totally understand that he is not satisfied with taking over once pogi declines, but instead beat him in his prime. so if he goes for tdf again, i‘m all for it. let‘s hope that pogi recovers soon!Ketterechts07-11-2026
- So gracious to offer something no-one would be prepared to pay for. The Giro is not the Tour and doesn’t command the same interest or attract the same “elite” (those willing to pay to be a part of something they consider has ego boosting potential). Roadside viewing will always largely remain free for everyone outside circuits. Introduction of a symbolic entrance to mountain climbs is worthy of exploration. Asking 1-2€ isn’t going to repulse real fans (most will spend 50-100€ on their outing that day all things included) but will prevent a portion of the total knobhead thrillseekers who will join in any large gathering as long as it’s free, just because they’re attracted to crowds, without which it it difficult for them to work up their anti-social behaviour.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- How is radio going to help when someone went over a cliff or bridge or off the roadside into a forest unnoticed and is laying there unconscious?Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- Yep, next we’ll be accusing F1 drivers of avoiding Le Mans.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- But on what is that opinion based? Are you holding him to a different standard than others? Are you saying he should do learn to like something he doesn’t Are you saying he hasn’t achieved enough Are you saying he pretends to be better than his results? It’s actually a really strange opinion to oust if you consider it objectively or rationally. Try applying it to others or yourself by asking if not EVERYONE should then be doing more? Nobody in athletics or swimming gets criticism for not expanding their repertoire when a rival or someone else does. In fact, most who move to another event get accused of running from their rival. Opinions are boring, the reasons behind them are what count.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- for a medical chief to throw things like is just bad. There are already radios which were banned for spectacle. allow radios. Gps trackers are not a complete solutionabstractengineer07-11-2026
- Yeah man...PogiSloFans07-11-2026
- any rider less than 25 whether they are really ready for the position of leadership of GT is probably not the case. I think Pogi himself suffered when he was defeated by Jonas in the TDF twice. But that would be the team's job to ensure support so that they can bounce back. It requires a team and time to get back up and win after getting knocked down.abstractengineer07-11-2026
- I'm very glad he got the big late Quickstep Vuelta win and I hope he has a few left for Euskaltel-Euskadi.flyer07-11-2026
Loading
Write a comment